French Lumiere at Garthmyl Hall

What a joy it is to share the work of one of my favourite photographers, the lovely and talented Emmy of Emmy Shoots.

Whilst the past year may have prevented Emmy from doing what she truly loves the most – photographing couples on their wedding day, she has not been sitting still, and at every given opportunity, has produced beautiful photography to inspire her clients and colleagues and to nurture her desire to produce sublime, feminine images like these. Emmy does this through her sought after MILES workshops, and we are incredibly lucky recipients of some of these workshop images today.

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Words by Emmy herself follow…

“When life gives you lemons…that’s been my ethos the last 12 months. I once heard someone say, your greatest tragedy can demand your biggest achievement. And haven’t we all learned that now.”

“The struggle we’ve powered through has created stronger human beings, the most creative work and a network of powerful relationships.”

“I’d been looking forward to discovering the South of France whilst photographing one of my couples weddings. So to hear the news that couldn’t travel and the wedding was postponed was completely devastating for all parties. We are set to travel later in the summer so fingers crossed for the industry.”

“Not wanting to miss out on a little ‘Je ne sais quoi’, I decided to bring France to us.”

“The facade at Garthmyl Hall, a georgian house set in the rolling hills, set the scene for our main alfresco, or shall I say, ‘, ‘en plein air’ dining. Being a Fine Artist, I always draw my inspiration from the art world. We channelled Claude Monet’s impressionist paintings of soft warm palettes with dream-like qualities.”

“I have a huge fascination with light and movement in still photography and so the depiction of light in its changing qualities with the inclusion of movement was a crucial element.”

“Beginning with soft pinks and touches of sky blues, we chose a palette to complement the soft greens and stone tones of the hall’s grand entrance.”

“The most beautiful aspect of Garthmyl are the huge stone pillars framing the blue French doorway. This was the backdrop for our ceremony and tablescape. Kate from Agnes & Bee adorned the pillars with free-flowing greens and gentle pops of colour using feathery smoke bush and round dahlias.”

“The tablescape was a natural extension of the main feature, bringing in a juxtaposition of modern elements with vintage metallics fit for Beauty and the Beast’s wedding.”

“Contemporary concretes, gold candlesticks and tableware created chaos in the refinery.”

“Our stylist, Sarah from Stories Of, magically crafted my ideas to create a muted table of French dreams. We designed the perfect stationery suite with Knock Knock Penny Studio, soft pinks with white marbled wax seals and an elegant fine art script.”

“Again creating a mixture of modern yet inspired by previous centuries traditions.”

“Romina Fochesatto designed a dress for the day. I based the majority of the colour palette based on this gown, a blush colour with intricate embroidery that took hours of craftsmanship. We kept this dress for last, to let the beads catch the later afternoon sun.”

“Our modern bride, Lara, had several changes throughout the day, a trend we’ve seen emerging recently. Our bride wanted to look elegant yet have fun with her dress. Our ceremony gown featured a flowing cape creating a regal feel to crisp white fabric.”

“A chance for me to play with expression of movement. Not one to conform, Romina’s dresses are beyond traditional concept as she creates bespoke pieces for all of her clients.”

“We accessorised Romina’s dresses with paired back elegant statement pieces from Tilly Thomas Lux. The jewellery is so versatile and we were able to create several looks with them, including using a set of earrings as a hair piece to highlight our brides sophisticated updo by the girls at Nala and Knot.”

“The duo team created two looks for us, again to highlight the growing trend for deux looks on the wedding day. Our bride had an understated look with soft dewy skin and neutral make-up.”

“It was important for us to create a real bride. This shoot was designed to create the illusion of a real wedding, and we wanted it to be believable as possible.”

“We styled our groom, Gabriel with a muted grey suit and calming greens to compliment Garthmyl Hall’s tones. So often, I’ve been turning to tuxedos for choosing a groom’s suit, however we felt colour was essential for this shoot, even when the colours were paired back.”

“We finished the day in the floral gardens at the back of the house. The setting late summer sun settled through the trees creating the dappled light throughout the lawns and the intimate summer house.”

“A champagne tower topped with Moet…yes and it was delicious, flowed as we all celebrated a fantastic and successful french inspired shoot at one of my favourite wedding venues.”

“My favourite images of the day are actually the ones of Lara and Gabriel enjoying the champagne with our when they thought I’d put my camera down. Those and of course those veil shots. An absolute necessity for a modern day bride.”

“Thank you all the team that made the day possible, and to Garthmyl Hall for always being incredible hosts.”